Meet Lisa McKenzie | Founder / CEO

We had the good fortune of connecting with Lisa McKenzie and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Lisa, what do you attribute your success to?
As an organization that works with cancer patients, the single most important factor behind our success is COMMUNITY. I say that because almost everyone has been touched by cancer, and it is such a problem as far as the sheer number of people who get diagnosed each year. My network of those who support my mission is comprised of deeply passionate individuals who want to make a difference in the lives of others. I have been extremely blessed with the support of caring individuals who have partnered with me for over 11 years, including sponsors and volunteers. Running a non-profit can be a very lonely endeavor, because you have to wake up everyday to sometimes very discouraging news. I get emails and texts from cancer survivors (or their family members) where they are literally lost without direction of where to turn for emotional healing. So, for me to have a strong network not only helps me stay afloat, but the network helps us connect individuals with the care they are seeking.

Alright, so for those in our community who might not be familiar with your business, can you tell us more?
In 2012, I “accidentally” founded the organization that I am running today. Or – perhaps the word I should use is “providentially” discovered my organization. Two of my good friends were diagnosed with cancer and I witnessed the toll that it took on them physically and emotionally. Leaning on my background as an event planner, entrepreneur and sorority member, I came up with an idea to create a fun sisterhood experience to help my two friends feel joyful and empowered again. I ran the idea past the cancer center, and they loved the concept and referred several patients. The idea was to put several cancer survivors through a runway training program, where they would learn skills such as walking, posing for the camera, etc. The end result would be a runway show in front of friends, family members and the oncology care community. The event ended up selling out that year with 450 guests, and it wasn’t until AFTER the event that the ladies really started expressing the need to have meaningful connection and activities with other survivors. We went from being an “event” to a year-round program, where we started working with life coaches and healing arts professionals to help women find their strength and power through the programs we created. Several healing arts programs were created, and two of them have received international award-winning acclaim. The two programs are ScART (which stands for “scar art”), where participants paint emotional or physical scars on canvas; and the second program is called “Story Crafting”, where participants work with a story coach for six weeks to deconstruct a traumatic event, and then reconstruct the story to show the lessons learned and the silver linings. Those programs have allowed us to offer assistance to cancer organizations across the country. To date, we have had more than 2,000 cancer survivors from across the states participate in the various programs we offer. My latest venture and addition to these programs is a new statewide platform that will bring information and resources to anyone in the state of Louisiana who is looking for support for any type of cancer. The network will be free to survivors and their family members. Has it been hard? Oh my goodness, YES! Primarily because we are a small team and most of what we do relies on sponsorship and grant support. The hardest part of what we do is to find the funding to be able to offer these programs for free to those who participate. Overcoming this challenge is to wake up everyday and continue collaborating because there is support out there! Just not enough hours in the day! My WISH is that perhaps someone is reading this — a person who has influence (such as actors, athletes, community leaders) — and that they would contact me to participate in ScART by painting THEIR scars on canvas. If we can get notable persons to share their artwork and their scars, they can help take away the stigma of traumatic events, and the information they share (by way of their ScART painting) can help others. (Note: There have been some incredible moments that we have shared with our programs, including breaking the Guinness World Record for the most models in a fashion show. The number of cancer survivors and models in our record breaking show was 430. We did this to help spread awareness about 19 different women’s cancers).

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
I’m originally from San Diego, and it took me a LONG time to integrate into the New Orleans’ culture because it is very unique here. I learned long ago that if you “observe” what is going on, you will be extremely perplexed. So, the best thing to do when you come here is to “partake” in the frivolity — even when it doesn’t make sense. So, with that said, upon landing, I would take my friend to the drive-thru daquiri shop just to get their reaction that YES we have drive-thrus where you can put a straw in your cocktail beverage of choice and drive off. Technically you aren’t supposed to drink it until you get home and I’m sure nobody has ever put their lips on the straws while driving because that wouldn’t be smart! But that’s New Orleans for you! It’s a city made up of head scratching concepts! The next thing I would do is take my friend to my house – a suburb of New Orleans. To get there, we would drive over the United States’ largest bridge over water – The Causeway Bridge – which connects New Orleans to our suburbs. The bridge is 24 miles long. Once at my house, and after a peaceful night’s sleep, and after meeting my two cats (Truman and Oliver), we would pour ourselves a nice cup of Community Coffee (a local blend) and then board a pontoon boat in my backyard, where we would travel beneath Spanish-moss covered cypress trees down the beautiful Tchefuncte (che-funked-ah) River, to a cute little town called Madisonville, On our ride, we’d take in seeing nature with egrets and alligators. We would dock the pontoon boat at one of the restaurants overlooking the river and my friend would indulge in crawfish etoufee’, beignets, gumbo and other southern delights. Of course there would be mimosas involved. That night, we would travel back across the lake into the city where we would stay at a beautiful boutique hotel and enjoy a magical dinner at a restaurant in the French Quarter. After dining, we would stroll down Royal Street to look at the galleries, and then walk down Bourbon Street and hop inside Pat O’Briens dueling piano bar. After that, we’d walk over to Cafe Du Monde and eat beignets. The next morning, we would head out to brunch and then walk over to the Superdome and cheer on the New Orleans’ Saints. After the game, we’d join the revelry of guests who are continuing their fun Sunday by jumping on a Street Car and riding up St. Charles Avenue to dinner, followed by live music at a music venue featuring New Orleans’ artists. This is a typical itinerary of what we do here to pass a good time 🙂

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
I would love to dedicate this shoutout to the HUNDREDS of men and women who have battled or are battling cancer, and who have participated in our programs. I also send love and acknowledgment to those we have lost along the way. I have had the privilege of hugging almost ALL of them! I get to know these amazing individuals who enter our programs feeling very vulnerable, but gain trust in our process, and then find love, light, support, strength and power. I get to witness their courage and transformation. I get to witness how God uses them to love one another. In the world of cancer, life can be so discouraging. In my world, we get to witness triumphs and we get to see how strong these warriors are when they bond together in our programs. To every single warrior out there, keep fighting! Join a supportive community and find your strength.

Website: www.younightevents.com

Instagram: @younight_runway

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lisaangelosmckenzie/

Facebook: www.facebook.com/younightevents

Youtube: @YouNightEmpoweringEvents

Image Credits
Tracie Morris Schaefer, Studio U Photography